Friday, April 17, 2015

Claudia Tatum, Now It's Personal

Richardson Idol has already voted Claudia Tatum (candidate for Richardson City Council Place 4) off the island. Normally, that would be the end of it. But I'm driven to add a postscript by one particular answer she gave in the candidate survey conducted by the League of Women Voters of Richardson.

The new technological era has allowed our city to provide better services through the online and smart phone systems. For example, we have the Richardson Application which allows citizens and stakeholders to access information from the palms of their hands. I believe in a more efficient way of conducting business: less paper and moving to a more digital era without forgetting our baby boomers.

If you were near me when I read that, you might have seen me shaking my fist at the clouds and heard me yelling for Claudia to get off my lawn.

I know the Baby Boom generation is aging (we all are). I know that Baby Boomers are retiring at a rate of 10,000 per day. But what does that have to do with "moving to a more digital era without forgetting our baby boomers"? Do Baby Boomers forget everything they know when they retire?

Bill Gates is a Baby Boomer. Steve Jobs was a Baby Boomer and Apple is still run by a Baby Boomer. The World Wide Web was invented by a Baby Boomer. It was the Baby Boom generation that got this whole digital era going. We know our way around a smart phone.

Because of the new technological developments, our younger generations expect faster and more reliable services at a low cost.

Say what??? "Our younger generations" expect that? Does Tatum think Baby Boomers are happy with slower and less reliable services at a high cost? Why in the world would she think anyone would be satisfied with that? The Baby Boomers are the last generation of Americans to know what life was like before computers. We invented the paperless world and we don't want to go back. We know our way around a smart phone. But I repeat myself. That's a symptom of old age, I guess. I'll give you that one, Claudia. As for your assumption that Baby Boomers aren't technologically savvy, well ... get off my lawn.

3 comments:

You are funny! But I get what she is talking about. My smart phone, I know how to do just a fraction of the things it is capable of. Won't even start with how to find things on Nextdoor.com I have been told about but can't find. And twitter, never mind.

She is correct. I cannot tell you how many "Baby Boomers" do not want to embrace technology. And for her to be concerned enough to bring it up is enough for me. Those who do, just have enough defiance to do it in spite of themselves. And you know what, if she doesn't want to get involved in the dog and pony shows, such as the LWV forum, good for her. She has done more in her short life tan all the current council combined. I salute her, and realize she is not as comfortable speaking to a group as she will become. She has guts and fortitude, something we have not seen since Jim Shepherd declined to run again. People loved her at our Forum ( by the way , how many attended the LWV Forum? I heard 40 and then 70, which makes me even prouder of our attendees.) You led off with the count at ours, but neglected to mention their count. Also, still no email promised by the rep of Mabel Simpson. Searching a server must take a long time. And though you may be sick of Simpson's repeated statement the we have too many laws already, she is correct. I will be voting for Claudia, but should Simpson, rumored to be a coalition pick, win, I hope she has the integrity of Shepherd and turns around and bites the coalition where they deserve to be bitten. Shelley McCall